Sun, Jun 22, 2014 page14

• Cambodian worker exodus threatens Thai economy

  The mass departure was sparked after the Thai junta gave a warning about illegal workers in what analysts say was a myopic move that failed to account for the vital economic role migrants play

  • By Anusak KONGLANG / AFP, BANGKOK
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  The dramatic departure of nearly 190,000 Cambodian migrant workers from Thailand threatens to hit labor-intensive industries from seafood to construction, damaging the Thai economy just as it teeters on the verge of recession.

  The workers who help keep major Thai businesses afloat, but often lack official work permits, have fled in droves, fearing a crackdown by the country’s new military junta after it warned that illegal migrants face arrest and deportation.

  Despite officials from both countries denying a clampdown is under way, rum ours of violent anti-immigration raids have spread across Thailand, where businesses already report feeling the pinch of a shrinking workforce.

  In Rayong Province, about 200km from the Thai-Cambodian border, factories have cut production after losing many of their Cambodian workers, said Sanguan Seangwongkij, vice chairman of the association of rubberwood operators in the region.

  “Many of the factories in my group have had to slow down production because of an up to 30 percent shortage of workers,” he said, adding it was “damaging foreign confidence” in the sector.

  The factories, which process old rubber trees to make furniture, rely upon Cambodian labor, but also hire workers from Myanmar, he said.

  Thailand has about 2.3 million legal migrant employees and a further 800,000 are thought to be working illegally, according to the Thai Department of Employment, but the International Organization for Migration says the latter figure is a conservative estimate.

  The kingdom has virtually no unemployment and depends upon neighboring Cambodia, Laos and particularly Myanmar — where the majority of Thailand’s migrants come from — to fill manual labor vacancies.

  Workers from Myanmar are not returning home in large numbers and analysts suggest the Cambodian exodus may be linked to the sensitive nature of diplomatic relations between Bangkok and Phonm Penh.

  Fugitive former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is bitterly opposed by the military now running the country, was a close ally of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen while in power.

  The sudden departure of what may be the entire Cambodian illegal migrant worker community — the International Organization for Migration estimates that there were up to 180,000 unofficial Cambodian migrant workers — has triggered concerns for the Thai economy.

  “We can’t afford to lose migrant workers. They are of vital importance to the expansion of Thailand’s economy,” said Suchart Chantaranakaracha, vice chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries’ Labor Affairs Department.

  “If the rumors continue and there is still drainage of Cambodia migrant workers out of Thailand, then there will be a problem,” he said.

  Even before the May 22 coup in which the army seized power from the administration of ousted Thai prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra, Thaksin’s sister, Thailand’s once vibrant economy was reeling from nearly seven months of deadly street protests that dented consumer confidence and scared off tourists.

  The economy shrank 2.1 percent quarter-on-quarter in the first three months of the year, according to an official estimate, sparking fears that it will contract again in the second quarter and slide into recession.

  The junta has been keen to show it is serious about kickstarting the economy, leading some analysts to suggest that it misjudged the impact of its warning to illegal migrant workers.

  “Politically, it’s always convenient to blame immigrant workers... The junta didn’t realize how quickly the rumors would circulate. Now they’re trying to backtrack,” said Bruno Jetin, a researcher at the Research Institute on Contemporary Southeast Asia.

  Thailand’s migration strategy has been criticized by groups for failing to implement long-term policies to address labor shortages.

  In a possible bid to stem the outflow of migrant workers, the military regime has said it recognizes their importance to the workforce.

  On Monday, an army general said the junta has plans to create special economic zones that would better manage the movement of migrants and a spokesman said it was also going to simplify registration for work permits.

  The recent crisis has exposed Thailand’s reliance upon foreign labor, but could prove to be a short-term problem, economist Charl Kengchon of the Kasikorn Research Center said.

  “If both countries can clarify misunderstandings, the situation will be resolved soon,” he added.

  Yet it remains unclear exactly how long it will take to refill the vacancies created by the flight of the Cambodians.

  Construction worker Yem Savoeun crossed the border on Wednesday morning after abandoning his job in the eastern Thai city of Nakhon Ratchasima, where he was helping build a seven-story hospital.

  He suspects the project has stalled as most of the workers on-site were Cambodians, nearly all of whom have fled.

  “I don’t know whether the Thai military will regret the actions that led to Cambodians fleeing,” he said. “But employers will lose out.”
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